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Requiem for the American Dream

April 23, 2015

Requiem for the American Dream

Legislation allowing the deregulation of financial institutions passed in the late 1970’s is beginning to boil over, as the income gap between classes continues to expand. What happens when the people of a nation seem to care less and less about one another and more about themselves?

Is this a symptom of a preconceived plan to keep people from rallying together, instead plying their minds with advertising and consumerism meant to distract and focus peoples attention on acquiring the material items that society dictates as “important”—goods that are not only status symbols but “stuff” to clutter the mind and home that represents the American dream—in an effort to deter thoughts of inequality.

These are just a few of the topics that world renown thinker Noam Chomsky ponders in his latest documentary film, Requiem for the American Dream, now playing at the Tribeca Film Festival. A film created to provoke thought, open discussion and ask modern questions:

Is this blog just a bolt in the wheel of consumer distraction? Or can art forms, be it music, theatre, fashion and film play a role in revealing the truth? As a result, does the return of the flared pant of the 70’s have more meaning than we might think? And how does social media play into this dichotomy. Is it there to distract and alienate us from one another or a way to find solidarity within like minded groups of people?

The freshly painted Bowery Wall by artist Ron English seems to mirror Chomsky’s ideas of a nation in need of change. Poking fun at consumerism, politics, religion, education and the products that are designed to slowly kills us, while the things that can medically heal us remain illegal. Is a baby hulk brewing . . .